What Would the Pennsylvania Dream Act Mean for PA?

Senator Lloyd Smucker is a leader in trying to pass the Pennsylvania Dream Act Bill.

Credit senatorsmucker.com

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At best estimate, tens of thousands of children of undocumented immigrants live in our state today. The Pennsylvania Dream Act would give children of undocumented immigrants who have attended high school in the state, an opportunity to apply for admission to state owned colleges and universities, or related universities, at in-state rates.

The Dream Act bill is led by Pennsylvania State Senator Lloyd Smucker, a Republican who says, “This is not a partisan issue this is about, what is the right thing to do for this group of kids.”

He goes on to say, “They want the same opportunity to contribute and to get good jobs as students they are going to school with.”

David Malone, President and CEO of Gateway Financial, feels like the bill is a key to gain more skilled labor, which is missing in Pennsylvania. According to Malone, there are currently 20 thousand to 30 thousand PA jobs that need to be filled by skilled labor. He says one of the key areas where skilled labor could be used is in industries that deal with Marcellus shale.

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Hundreds of immigrants come to Pittsburgh to refine their skills in engineering and the sciences at schools like CMU and University of Pittsburgh. But current immigration laws often cannot keep this potential workforce in the United States.

Brian Kennedy, Vice President of Strategic Services and Government Relations for the Pittsburgh Technology Council says these potential entrepreneurs are leaving Pittsburgh for places that have more comprehensive immigration legislation.

Pittsburgh City Council voted Wednesday to issue a resolution that urges Congress to pass a comprehensive immigration reform package.

Authored by Councilwoman Natalia Rudiak, the Will of Council document demands an easier process for foreigners to become U.S. citizens.

"There is no reasonable system for people to become citizens of this country," Rudiak said. "That's why we have 11 million people living in the shadows. If we actually had a reasonable pathway to citizenship, people would be doing that."

Undocumented students gathered at the state Capitol Tuesday to urge lawmakers to grant them in-state tuition at Pennsylvania’s 18 state-owned and state-supported universities, citing their struggles to advance their education after high school without the same help afforded their peers.

Carina Ambartsoumian, 25, said her parents came to the United States from the former Soviet Union in 1993, fleeing religious persecution and hoping to attain refugee status. She said her family’s papers were not recognized by the newly independent Ukraine after the Soviet Union dissolved.